The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-02-12
MEMORIES OF WAsHOE
Fighting for Mining Claims In
the Days Of Washoe.
Dan de Quille in Salt Lake Tribune.

Dan de Qullle III Salt Lake Tribune.
At various times since the dis
covery of silver in Nevada Their
have been very serious claim fight
along the Comstock and in numer
GUS other localities, men being sent
first and last, to their final accoun
to "get their time" at the grea
head Office on the golden shore.
However, all the troubles were no
attended with fatal results.
In the early days there occurred
an "unpleasantness" between tn,
Bullion and "42O" companies, a
Gold Hill, that proved more comi
cal than bloody. The 1920" folks
were sinking shaft on what wal
claimed to be Bullion ground. J
NJ. Walker, then Superintendent o
the Bullion, told his men he woulC
make each of them q handsom.
present in case they would cut tn.
"42O" fellows off. The Bullior
miners accordingly pushed drift
of nights, when the "420" mer
were not at work, and at last tapped
their shaft near the bottom. They
then set to work and placed a tlool
of timoers across the shaft. Mex
morning the "42O" interlopers came
to work on their shaft, which was
about 400 feet deep. and in the bot
tom of which three or four feet o.
water usually accumulated over
night.
They did their hosting by mean.
of a horse whim. Not having tho
remotest idea of what had beer
going on in the bottom of theil
shaft the previous night, the mer
of "42O" let down their bucket fol
the purpose of bailing out the wa
ter preparatory to sending dOwr
the miners.
The bucket came down and resteC
on the timber floor. When it haG
been down long enough to fill, al
the fellows above calculated, il
slowly began to ascend. The light
ness of the load must have greatly
astonished the old horse at thu
whim. The Bullion boys laugh ghet
heartily as they saw the empt.
bucket crawling up the shaft ano
pictured to themselves the aston
ishment of the parties above at see
ing it come up dry.
Presently the old bucket came
poking down again in search o
water. This time in order to MAKE
sure of reaching the bottom of thei
shaft, the "42O" folks let dowr
about twenty feet of slack cable
Seeing this, Johnny Craney (after
wards underground foreman of th'
Hale & Norcross mine for a lont
time) lodged out into the shaft ant
unlocking the cable from th'
bucket, hooked it around the heavy
timbers. In short time the cable
began to crawl up the shaft ant
soon became taut.
If the old horse was before aston
ished at the lightness of the load
he must now have been astonishet
at its great weight. Several inef
fectual pulls were taken at the ca
BILE. 1t was better than circus TO
the Bullion boys down in the mine
and they laughed till the tears raj
down their cheeks as they imagined
the old horse above scratching
gravel as he. got down to his work
with the utterly dumbfounded "42O
fellows whipping and whooping a
him. 1t was all of no use, the tim
Der was firm and the hempen cabl
strong. The men were obliged t
unhitch the horse and give up work
as they were unable tO get dow
their shaft.
In a day or two the "42O" folk
got hint from some one as to wha
was the matter, or in some wa.
dropped on the situation, as tn
Superintendent of that claim cam
to Walker and told him if he woul'
let them have their cable they woul'
abandon the shaft and start in an
other place. The cable, therefore
was unfastened and the "42O." me-
hauled it up. However, fearin
treachery, the Bullion men, unde
the instructions of Captain Sar
Owens, their foreman, timbered u
|-bulkheaded-the drift leading in
to the disputed shaft.
Their suspicious of bad fait
proved to be we'll founded, for n
sooner had the "42O" folks regaine
their cable than down came two 9
their men with axes and bega
chopping at the timbers in the bo'
| tom of the shaft. They were OF
dered to desist, when one of ther
said "We were sent down to cles
the shaft, and be jabbers we'll clea
itw -, .
"If you strike another lick" sal
Sam Owens, "we"ll blow you OF
At the TOP Of the shaft We've &c
a keg of powder under the timber
and all ready to light the fuse an
send you straight to Heaven r
"Fire away, and be--to you
sung out one of the choppers ev
IDENTIFY not believing the story abot